Reprimand
by greenangel7
Summary: Optimus lectures Ironhide for acting out of line, but finds he's a lot lower on energy than he thought. Thankfully Ironhide's there to supply what he needs.


DISCLAIMER!

I don't own transformers, they belong to Hasbro/Takara. No need to sue 8P

I started this as a drabble, but it turned out a little longer than I expect... which is cool, I guess. It's my first crack at tf fanfiction, so I hope you enjoy it. I wrote it to go along with Marzarelo's fic Effort Not Wasted, so be sure to check out her stuff too. 8)

Optimus was tired.

Ironhide wasn't helping. He stood across the room from him, feeling awkward but too stubborn to do anything to alleviate the situation. He had been the target of a certain childish dinobot, and he foolishly encouraged the tussle to escalate by fighting back. He knew he shouldn't have done that. He knew then like he knew now, but when someone like Grimlock takes a swipe at him, it's just not in his programming to shrug it off and walk away. So now he was here, in Prime's office. He was being escorted to the brig along with Grimlock by Prowl, but Prime had comm'd Prowl and told him to send Ironhide to his office instead. Ironhide wasn't sure if that was a good thing, though. Looking at his leader, he could tell Prime didn't want to deal with this now. The way he almost slouched in his chair, how he held a hand up to his face to rub the space between his optics, Ironhide knew Prime would much rather take a cube and recharge for the rest of the night. But he knew he wouldn't leave this matter unattended to before then, because of his sense of responsibility for those that served under his command.

"Ironhide," Prime started. Ironhide looked to him, expecting a lecture about responsibility and setting an example for others. Prime held his hand out in a gesture as he tried to form his frustration into appropriate words. After a moment of silence, he cycled air through his vents in a sigh of defeat and let his hand fall to his lap. No words came to him. He knew that Ironhide knew the error of his actions, so there really was nothing to say.

"Sir?" Ironhide watched Prime's movements carefully; he hadn't seen him this drained in a long time. He could see how dim his optics were from across the room, and how they flickered dangerously up close. "Prime, when did you last take energon?" He circled around the desk to stand beside him, waiting patiently for an answer.

Prime looked at him, but shook his head & rebooted his optics in an attempt to focus what little energy he had. "It doesn't matter. This is about you, not me. You failed to set an example to the others."

"I did what needed to be done," he replied stubbornly.

"You instigated an unnecessary brawl."

"Grimlock tested his boundaries and my limits, so I should just let him have his way?"

"He would have been dealt with in an appropriate manner if you had let him be." Prime focused his optics on Ironhide's.

"Sir, a night or two in the brig won't change the fact that he's always looking for a fight!"

"And your arguing of this ship's disciplinary methods doesn't change the fact that you didn't act responsibly!" Prime rose from his seat to face Ironhide, but found he barely had the energy to continue being upset, and instead of standing tall and dominant, he leaned over and nearly collapsed in Ironhide's hands. He gripped the red warrior's shoulders and leaned on him for support while Ironhide gripped his own arms below the shoulders to help keep him steady. There was a long moment of awkwardness as Prime kept his hold on him. "Primus," he finally spoke in a barely audible groan.

"Sir, you really need to recharge." Concern was evident in Ironhide's voice even though he lowered his tone to try and hide it. He waited, but the larger mech didn't move.

"You're right," said the commander. A tremendous sigh went through him, leaving him leaning heavily against Ironhide. "I am so tired," he said softly, moving just enough to look at him in the optics. "My old friend."

"Don't do this, Optimus." Ironhide pleaded. How he had managed to go so long on so little energy, he had no clue. He made a note to himself to let Ratchet know, he knew the medic would make sure it wouldn't happen again.

"I can't just let you go without reprimand," Optimus said, a gentle smile pulling at his lips under the mask and softening his gaze.

Ironhide huffed in frustration. "Then I'll go to the brig! I'll stay locked up with Grimlock for the night."

"No," Optimus said slowly with a low, decisive tone. "You're not going anywhere."

Ironhide looked at his leader in confusion. "Sir?"

Optimus' grip on the warrior's shoulders tightened marginally as he held his head near Ironhide's. When he spoke again, it was directly into his audio receiver, and he spoke soft and low, but with all the commanding authority he had. "Don't move."

If it had been any other mech, Ironhide would've pushed away and given him an audiofull before alerting Ratchet of a possible glitch. If it had been any other mech, he would've been concerned for the stability of their processor. But with Optimus, his friend since before the war, he knew better. There wasn't any glitch or virus effecting his judgment or manipulating his actions. There was only Optimus' honest need, his careful gentleness.

Ironhide had seen him in this position once before, with another mech. But that was before he was Prime, back when Cybertron still had a hopeful future to look forward to. Ironhide had been surprised when he unwittingly stumbled across the two, and he hurriedly apologized for interrupting and left them alone. He felt embarrassed at the sight of his close friend in such an intimate position with another, and he made sure to look for hints in his friend's behavior with others in the future so that he could avoid it happening again. He never felt jealousy, though. Even when Optimus & Elita-1 were regularly seeing each other, and Ironhide saw less & less of his friend. Ironhide was happy for him, busied himself with other things, and didn't think much about it.

But he was thinking about it a lot now. Though he had never imagined being on the receiving end of Optimus' passion, if that's what you could call this, he was desperately trying to decide if it was something he could get used to. Ironhide knew from Optimus' past partners that he was and intimate lover, but there wasn't any sweetness in the movements or gestures, given Optimus' state. But it was his state that drew Ironhide into it all in the first place. If he wasn't so drained, they wouldn't be standing here, Optimus plugging into his port in a one-sided connection to syphon off his own energy supply.

Everything about his actions right then was defined by a primal need that all mechs share. There's no emotion involved when one takes his share of sustenance to function another day, it s just a natural requirement. It's the most basic, primitive, simplest need to survive.

But when two are connected in passion, sharing the same sustaining energy over cable links and field barriers, it is often difficult to keep the sensations from sweeping one's emotions up in the experience. And when that happens- when love happens, everything gets complicated. And sometimes stupid.

What Ironhide was experiencing wasn't really complicated. Optimus had a need, and he was going to meet it. A one-sided connection, Ironhide's internal energy supply syphoned off just enough to keep Optimus online for an hour or two. Being on the receiving end of a free ride, a pleasant high, without needing to do anything except sit back and enjoy it- and monitor energy levels, of course. No emotion involved, just a primal need.

And yet Ironhide couldn't help but _feel_. The movements were natural, nothing special about it, but the way they were carried out so carefully, so precisely- there was no room for error here, to be sure. But the gentleness, the tenderness of the touches and the shifting of weight, and the careful alignment and grinding against his port and hips and thighs. How could he not experience his friend, his Prime in this way and not feel? Even when the high peeked and he floated weightless as his internal systems adjusted to the sudden change of energy levels, disconnecting Optimus' cable link & helping him to his berth where he wouldn't let go of Ironhide's wrist, ordering him to rest with him for the night...

There was no avoiding it. But he let the complications wait for now. Optimus was tired, and it's time to rest.


End file.
